SOUND BITES

Butch Walker's eighth solo album (I still hold the torch for Marvelous 3 and their three records from 1997-2000) has many ambitions. For those familiar with his career to this point, the first ambition is to surprise; after building his formidable discography with sugary, nostalgic hard rock and introspective folk, American Love Story is his vision of a rock opera complete with spoken word segués, so many references to classic rock songs it's dizzying, and a loose narrative following a small town redneck learning to love and accept the differences in his life. It also aims to start a conversation in America, which is made plain by the incessant repetition of "are we having a conversation?" in The Singer , which serves as the album's introduction; it gets a bit grating, but effectively hammers the point. From there, strap in if you're a fan of classic rock radio; this album is described by Walker as being "wrapped up in a soundtrack that sounds like the F...

When last we got an album of new music from Car Seat Headrest, it won my Album of the Year award; 2016's Teens of Denial took a '90s indie throwback approach and infused it with Will Toledo's witty songwriting to create an album that was simultaneously nostalgic and of the moment. It was a thrilling record that won Toledo accolades and immediately put him (in the minds of many fans and critics, at least) at the forefront of the indie rock movement. To me, Teens of Denial was a fresh and reassuring record, one that proved that rock was in good hands. When the decision was made to re-record one if his bedroom classics as Twin Fantasy (Face to Face) , it too was well received and, even if it wasn't a proper follow-up, it eased anticipation for what was due to come after such an excellent album as Teens of Denial . Now, success in music is kind of subjective, especially in these modern times, and responses to success can vary wildly depending on the artist. In the case of...

The wait for Man Man's sixth album has been excruciating for fans of the group; it's been nearly seven years since the release of On Oni Pond , and Dream Hunting in the Valley of the In-Between has been about four years in the making. This is also the band's first record for esteemed indie label Sub Pop and, as such, there's an air of importance surrounding this record. There's also a little uncertainty coming into this for fans, as the long gestation period combined with the side projects Honus Honus embarked on during the down time and the general "anything goes" sonic attitude that Man Man possesses make for a situation where there was no telling what we were getting from this record. What we ended up getting was a beautiful, slightly haunted, often funny, sometimes heartbreaking and naturally unpredictable listening experience. The ride is, as to be expected from a Man Man record, wild; listeners of pre-release single Cloud Nein are treated to a fake...

Eighteen albums might not seem like a lot to review in four months, but that running tally for 2020 does fill me with a little pride; even with a global pandemic and some time off work allowing me to spend much more time with music, averaging about one review per week is more than I thought possible considering how much procrastination (and, at times, outright ignorance) has played into my work ethic around here in recent years. That said, there has been so much more released already this year that's worth talking about. So, I decided to go ahead and reinstate the gimmicky but fun haiku reviews I used as a cop out when catching up last year leading up to Year in Rock. This doesn't mean these albums don't warrant more thought out reviews, I just didn't get to them in a timely enough fashion. It also doesn't mean these albums aren't good enough to devote more time to; in fact, in a year where Fiona doesn't just decide to release a generational masterpiece, a...

If you haven't paid much attention to Glenn Danzig, or his formidable career as both a solo artist and onetime singer for highly influential horror/punk group The Misfits, there's a chance that the thing you know him best for is a picture that circulated around the internet about ten years ago. A true down-to-earth moment for the rock star, he was snapped coming out of a store carrying some groceries and a box of kitty litter, and people went wild for it in a cute, "he's just like us" sort of way. A passion project and a tribute to his childhood idol that had been in the works for several years, Danzig Sings Elvis is the result of a lifetime of fandom; in pre-release interviews, he talked about his reverence for The King, and glowed about how influential Elvis was on his own career. So, what do we get from this long-awaited project? A string of dull, uninspired sounding covers, performed and mixed so badly it's shocking to me that it was given the green ...

The debut solo record by Radiohead guitarist Ed O'Brien has had a particularly long gestation period; the songs that make up Earth date as far back as 2012, and the variety heard on this record speak to a wide range of influences. Perhaps the most notable jumping-off point for what to expect from Earth is the most club-inspired moments from The Stone Roses or Primal Scream, although there is a tendency for some of the album's songs to travel down disparate avenues. You can hear these sonic journeys in the playful tones of lead track Shangri-La as they explode into its crunchy Brit-rock chorus, then again as the gentle, melodic Brasil unfolds into a thunderous booty shaker at its midway point. This pair of opening tracks signal an album that's not content being one dimensional; Deep Days continues the adventurousness, owing much of its charm to a rumbling bass and an R&B-inspired beat which propels the song to its simple yet satisfyingly sweet chorus. The mood turn...

Unprecedented times call for an unprecedented album. For fans of Fiona Apple, the wait for her fifth record was excruciating enough at nearly eight years, but it was supposed to be even longer; while ramping up to the release of Fetch the Bolt Cutters , there was talk about her label wanting to wait until the fall to bring it out. However, with the world in uncertainty thanks to a global pandemic, the decision was made to accelerate the process, which is a godsend; this album dropping during a time when most artists are pushing plans back allows for us to give it the full attention it deserves. The timing of its release certainly isn't the only thing unconventional about Fetch the Bolt Cutters . Top to bottom, there's precious little concession to be heard on this record; recorded at her home in California, these songs eschew any accessible inclinations in favour of raw emotion. Throughout, Apple croons, growls, scats, raps and broadly uses her voice as an added instrumen...